Vermeulen unlikely to make team for first test
SPRINGBOK loose forward Duane Vermeulen will only join the squad five days before the opening test against France because of club commitments‚ which could have an impact on making the run-on test team.
Vermeulen’s club, Toulon, have qualified for the French Top 14 final after beating La Rochelle 18-15 in the semifinal and will now play Clermont in the showpiece this Sunday.
That would mean the earliest Vermeulen would return to South Africa is Monday evening.
Considering he has missed all the Bok training camps‚ he will only have three training sessions with the squad and will be required to start out of position at blindside flank to accommodate new skipper Warren Whiteley. Vermeulen is unlikely to make the run-on team. Bok coach Allister Coetzee on Saturday added Sharks flank Jean-Luc du Preez to the Bok squad‚ which was a sure sign that they are planning to play without Vermeulen.
The veteran of 37 tests has never started on the bench. When he has been selected‚ it has always been in the run-on team.
With Vermeulen playing the Boks win 71% of the time‚ which is considerably higher than their average historical winning record of 63%.
But the 30-year-old will have to reinvent himself as a blindside flank with Whiteley now guaranteed a starting place as skipper.
The positions are not massively different and Vermeulen will still be a primary ball carrier and a huge defensive and breakdown presence. But he will have to tighten up his game‚ allowing Whiteley to roam.
Sharks centre Lukhanyo Am has had his Springbok dream put on hold after fracturing a cheekbone during his team’s 22-10 Super Rugby win over the Stormers at Kings Park on Saturday.
Lions centre Lionel Mapoe replaces the promising 23 year old.
It is a bitter blow for Am‚ who will undergo surgery later this week‚ but he has proven his worth over the course of the Super Rugby campaign and will no doubt have another opportunity.
The rest of the Springbok team gathered in Plettenberg Bay yesterday to begin preparations for the June series.
Meanwhile, France coach Guy Noves on Saturday recalled flyhalf Jules Plisson and named rookies Damian Penaud, Anthony Jelonch and Vincent Rattez in his squad for the South Africa tour.
Stade Francais flyhalf Plisson has not been called up since June last year when he joined France’s tour of Argentina, but was sidelined thereafter.
France play three test matches against the Springboks on June 10 in Pretoria, June 17 in Durban and June 24 in Johannesburg.
Squad:
Forwards (19): Uini Atonio (La Rochelle), Eddy Ben Arous (Racing 92), Mohamed Boughanmi (La Rochelle), Yacouba Camara (Toulouse/Montpellier), Camille Chat (Racing 92), Xavier Chiocci (Toulon), Goujon (Bordeaux-Bègles), Kevin Gourdon (La Rochelle), Guilhem Guirado (Toulon), Arthur Iturria (Clermont), Anthony Jelonch (Castres), Julien le Devedec (Brive), Bernard le Roux (Racing 92), Yoann Maestri (Toulouse), Clement Maynadier (BordeauxBègles), Louis Picamoles (Northampton/ENG), Jefferson Poirot (BordeauxBègles), Rabah Slimani (Stade Français/Clermont), Romain Taofifenua (Toulon) Backs (16): Djibril Camara (Stade Français), Henry Chavancy (Racing 92), Jonathan Danty (Stade Français), Jean-Marc Doussain (Toulouse), Brice Dulin (Racing 92), Antoine Dupont (Castres), Gael Fickou (Toulouse), Yoann Huget (Toulouse), Camille Lopez (Clermont), Maxime Machenaud (Racing 92), Damian Penaud (Clermont), Jules Plisson (Stade Français), Vincent Rattez (La Rochelle), Baptiste Serin (Bordeaux-Bègles), Scott Spedding (Clermont), Virimi Vakatawa (FFR) – Addtional reporting by AFP